Shinzō Ōya

Shinzō Ōya (大屋 晋三, Ōya Shinzō, 5 July 1894 – 9 March 1980) was an entrepreneur and politician, who served as Minister of Commerce and Industry in post-war Japan.[1]

Shinzō Ōya 大屋晋三
Shinzō Ōya
Minister of Transport
In office 16 February 1949 – 28 June 1950
Prime Minister	Shigeru Yoshida
Preceded by	Saeki Ozawa
Succeeded by	Takeshi Yamazaki
Minister of Finance Acting
In office 14 December 1948 – 16 February 1949
Prime Minister	Shigeru Yoshida
Preceded by	Sanroku Izumiyama
Succeeded by	Hayato Ikeda
Minister of Commerce and Industry
In office 19 October 1948 – 16 February 1949
Prime Minister	Shigeru Yoshida
Preceded by	Shigeru Yoshida (acting)
Succeeded by	Heitarō Inagaki
Personal details
Born	(1894-07-05)July 5, 1894 Meiwa, Gunma, Japan
Died	March 9, 1980(1980-03-09) (aged 85)
Nationality	Japan
Alma mater	Tokyo University of Commerce

Ōya was born in what is now part of the town of Meiwa in Gunma Prefecture, where his father was a high school principal and his grandfather had been a samurai in the service of Kawagoe Domain. He graduated from what later became Hitotsubashi University in 1918. On graduation he joined the zaibatsu Suzuki Shoten, and from 1925 went to work for Teijin, eventually becoming its president in November 1945.

In his early career, he was praised as a charismatic manager, who introduced new synthetic fibers which made Teijin a market leader in the fabric industry. However, he later was criticized for over-diversification, and for his refusal to surrender authority over the company despite his obvious mental decline in old age, which led Teijin to the brink of bankruptcy.

In 1947, Ōya was elected to a seat in the Diet of Japan in 1947 Upper House election from the Osaka electoral district, and was reelected for a second term, serving until June 1956 under Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) banner. From 19 October 1948 – 16 February 1949, he was Minister of Commerce and Industry under the 2nd Shigeru Yoshida administration, as well as interim Minister of Finance from 14 December 1948 to 16 February 1949. During the 3rd Yoshida administration, Ōya served as Minister of Transport from 16 February 1949 to 28 June 1950.

Ōya was married to the singer and writer Ōya Masako.